


Tales of a Dark Future

by Tesla_Rolex



Category: Persona 5
Genre: Alternate Universe - Noir, Angst, Assassins & Hitmen, F/M, Murder, Past Character Death, Yakuza, dark au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-10
Updated: 2020-10-10
Packaged: 2021-03-08 04:47:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,474
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26939845
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tesla_Rolex/pseuds/Tesla_Rolex
Summary: Where do you go after you’ve lost everything? You scrounge up the last bits of sanity you have left, take all that you have left, and use those tools of destruction to wage war.Yakuza AU for Shumako Mini Bang!
Relationships: Amamiya Ren/Niijima Makoto, Kurusu Akira/Niijima Makoto, Niijima Makoto/Persona 5 Protagonist
Comments: 6
Kudos: 25
Collections: ShuMako Mini Bang





	Tales of a Dark Future

The streets were completely empty. As they had been for nearly every night for the past five years.

Shinjuku and Shibuya had become a completely different city in the night. The SIU and Military tried stepping in, but every single time they tried, it never worked.

And there is a reason for that.

One man, an artist, had made the unfortunate decision to walk through the streets, searching for some kind of inspiration.

Lucky for the hunter watching him from the distance.

The artist, named Madarame, was walking without a care in the world, unaware of the figure that had just dropped down behind him…and started very quickly running towards him.

The hunter tackled Madarame to the ground and held him at gunpoint with a silenced pistol. The figure wore some sort of white and black masquerade mask with a black and red suit and tie.

“Ichiryusai Madarame.  _ So _ good to see you.

His voice came out dark, distorted. Like he was some demon sent from another realm.

Madarame started whimpering. “ _ You?! _ Please, let me go, I’ll give you anything you wan-“

The hunter’s grip on his gun never wavered. “You are guilty of assault, plagiarism, torture, counterfeiting, and placing kids under what is essentially indentured servitude.”

“I can give great services to the Yakuza! A-and to you, young man!”

The hunter grinned. “Please. Call me  _ Joker _ .

And the Yakuza is under new management, and we don’t want scumbags like you with us.

Plus…you hurt my friend a few years back.

So,  _ Azazel _ , let’s make this simple. What do you want your last words to be?”

Madarame cried out, “ **PLEASE!** ”

…Then sirens blazed in the distance.

Madarame quickly grinned. “Hah! You, You’re going to pay for this! The entire SIU is in my pocket!”

The Joker smirked, and hoisted Madarame up. “Oh man, this is going to be great.”

The cars stopped in front of them, with two men dressed in suits pointing guns right at the both of them.

“Hello, officers! My name is-!”

“ **Put your hands up!** ”

“Listen-!”

“ **NOW!** ”

Madarame tried pitching in. “This man tried to kill me, he’s an assassin!”

“ **Both of you, put your hands up, NOW!** ”

The Joker finally grew exasperated and shouted, at the top of his lungs, “ **WHY DON’T YOU ASK SHIDO WHAT HE THINKS OF THIS?!** ”

The cops went dead silent. Madarame’s fear ratcheted up when he saw the cops hesitate. Joker was still grinning.

“Now, do both of you  _ kind gentlemen _ understand the situation?”

The two cops slowly nodded.

“Good! Now, please leave me and my guest alone.”

The cops…saluted. “Yes sir. Sorry for the trouble.”

And they got back in their cars, and left.

Madarame went back into full panic mode.

“ **WAIT, WAIT, PLEASE, DON’T LEAVE ME-!** ”

Joker shut him up by just shooting him right in the temple. He collapsed to the floor, with nothing but a thud, as Ren Amamiya just sighed.

“That…

That was for  _ Yusuke.” _

——-Where do you go after you’ve lost everything?——

Makoto was having a pretty lousy day. First she had to deal with hours upon hours of different crime families coming to her for protection.

Easy enough.

Then she had to deal with people making a pass at her.

Fine, sure, all she had to do was break a couple of hands.

But when a plan, that she and her boyfriend had spent hours crafting went to waste thanks to an idiot?!

On the anniversary of…well...

Needless to say, Makoto was upset.

“We told you…to use the device Sakura gave you. You didn’t  _ need _ to try hot-wiring. And the way you drove so recklessly…!”

“But ma’am!”

Makoto scowled. “First of all…my  _ name _ is  **_Queen_ ** .”

She had been sitting on this throne(which was essentially a giant chair they bought from Kichijoji surrounded by paper mâché skulls she made in her last year of Shujin) in this lone room with only candle-lights illuminating it the entire time. She stood up and started walking down the steps, never breaking eye contact from the goon in front of her.

“And second…never,  _ ever _ interrupt me.

She took a seat at the base of the steps, giving the illusion that the goon had all the power here.

He didn’t.

“The only reason we picked you up from prison was because you were skilled. But this wasn’t skill. This was carelessness. You made  _ too _ much noise, attracted attention from the police, the government, everyone!

Instead of backing down, you  _ drove through _ a convoy, and while you are lucky to be alive, this is  _ not _ how we do things.”

The goon sighed. “Then why even hire me? You have other ways of approaching conflicts, I’m not an idiot.”

Makoto paused for a moment. Then flashed a sinister smile. “Not everything can be solved by supernatural means. Sometimes you have to bring...a somewhat, personal touch to things…”

She stood up, almost towering over the goon. “Go back to your post. We’ll send out a new assignment by tomorrow.

Don’t fail this time or…

There  _ will _ be consequences.”

The goon trembled slightly, then nodded and walked out of the room.

He tried not to think of how her eyes flashed bright red at that statement.

Makoto meanwhile, took a deep breath as she looked around her room. Shujin had gone bust a while ago, after…well, the  _ incident _ with Kobayakawa. So when the time came, she got enough money to buy the place. It served as a good location for a hideout. And there were far better schools out there. This place specifically, where her throne lay, was actually the gym room.

Ryuji or Yusuke would be amused by the irony of that.

She sat back down and took a deep breath. “Hard to believe it’s been five years.”

“Five years?”

She looked up to see her boyfriend, Ren Amamiya at the door. “Five years since _ I  _ failed, you mean?”

Makoto gave him a look. “We’ve talked about this, it wasn’t your fault.”

Ren took a seat besides her, putting his gun down to the side. “Yeah, it was. I was the leader, I was supposed to keep everyone safe.”

“No one could have expected Shido would pull the rug out from under us that early. Even Akechi was betrayed. He tried to protect us by keeping Kobayakawa safe! You’ve seen how broken up he was about what happened! We  _ all _ should have known better.”

“ _ I _ should have known better. It wasn’t Akechi’s or Futaba’s job to keep track of things in the underworld, or Haru’s to see what was happening in the higher scheme of things. That was  _ my _ job. Yaldabaoth and Shido destroyed us. And it was  _ my _ fault. I was the leader. It was my job to see events like this coming, and deal with it. But I didn’t see it. And because of it, everyone died, and it was  _ my fault _ . Sojiro, Ryuji, Ann, Yusuke, Haru, Morgana, and Sae, all gone.

Because of  _ me _ .”

An eerie silence filled the room. Then Makoto chuckled slightly. “Well…at least Shido got what he deserved.”

Ren’s lips quirked. “Yeah. Funny how in one day I would understand _ exactly _ what Akechi was talking about with that whole revenge thing.”

“And you got to usurp a god.”

“Hah! Yes, I got to usurp a god. Hey, don’t forget about how you gave Kobayakawa a piece of your mind!”

Makoto scowled. “The moment the people whose hearts we changed started getting out of jail, of course we had to do something.”

Ren scoffed. “I wasn’t expecting you to go far though.”

“No one missed him. Least of all, us.”

“Yeah. I suppose you’re right.

But really, that was just a prologue, in the end.”

“Then Kaneshiro. And then we went for any other rotten adult we encountered-“

“And Madarame.” Ren held up a picture. One of the late Madarame’s corpse.

Makoto’s smile went wide. “Did he suffer?”

“No. I just…made him think it was going to be okay. Cops dropped by though.”

“Does it still feel good to do to them what Shido did to you?”

“...Every time.”

Makoto picked up on Ren’s hesitation, and kissed him on the cheek without a second thought, leaving the latter to pause. Then he grinned. “What was that for?”

“For sticking with me all these years.”

“Why don’t you tell Akechi and Futaba the same thing?”

“You were there at the beginning. They tagged along later once…things cooled down a bit.”

Ren smiled softly. “Well, it’s nothing. I’d do anything for my study partner.”

Makoto lightly shoved him at that, the both of them lightly chuckling.

Another silence.

Then Makoto sighed. “We’ve changed so much. Hard to believe we’ve become mob bosses and murderers.”

Ren smirked. “Hard to believe the person that grew up watching Yakuza movies would  _ become _ a Yakuza.”

“Yeah.” She had a weak smile. “I doubt my dad would be proud of me.” She paused for a second. Then spoke up. “Do you ever regret it? The paths we chose?”

Ren dipped his head down. “No. Not really. We did what we did for a reason. Everything was taken from us. It’s not like we had any other choice. I don’t regret helping you after you brutalized Kobayakawa, and I don’t regret continuing that path. It’s…just what made sense.

And I hate to say it but…I don’t think anyone would be proud of what we’re doing. My parents never really gave a shit about me so that makes things easier. Ryuji’s mom is still mourning but…

Well, it’s not like there’s anyone left to be disappointed in us.”

Then his eyes went wide. “God, I’m so sorry, that was in really poor taste.”

Makoto looked up to Ren with a determined face. “No. You’re right. No use looking back on what’s already done. Or looking to people who aren’t even here. All that’s left is us.

And I don’t regret it either. This is the reality we’ve been left with. Might as well do something with it. No one can do anything about it.

I mean look at us! We’re adults in a world that was taken from us! We have no futures, no lives, nothing.

In a way, this is all we have. We’re in a perpetual ‘one last job.’”

Ren paused. Then grinned. “That time may have passed us now, but as long as we live…the memory of the Phantom Thieves won’t die. Not until the people that destroyed them are  _ purged _ .”

Another small silence. Then Makoto smirked slightly, pulling out a photo from her pocket. “Speaking of purge…an old friend has just been let out of jail..”

Ren raised an eyebrow, as Makoto readjusted her position, sitting right next to him. “Old friend? I don’t remember meeting any gangsters in Solitary confinement.”

“Not a gangster, and you knew him before them.” Makoto handed the picture to him. “Remember him?”

Ren took a good look at the picture. Then his eyes went wide. “ _ He’s _ out?”

“Yup.”

“Seriously?”

“His sentence ended. You know how the government works.”

Ren’s eyes were wide. But then he steeled himself. “ _ Where? _ ”

“Futaba tracked him down to a warehouse just outside the city. Plan is to meet Akechi and Futaba near there to provide weapons and intel.”

Ren looked up at Makoto with a weary expression. “You’re talking like you intend to come along.”

Makoto nodded. “That’s the plan.”

“Why?”

She scowled. “If you think I’m going to pass up destroying the final _ mistake _ we made as Phantom Thieves, you’re sorely mistaken.”

Ren smirked. “Fine. You want to do this the metaverse way or the other way.”

“The other way.

I figure that someone like Suguru Kamoshida deserves…

Personal attention.”

———You scrounge up the last bits of sanity you have left———

“Goro Akechi, as I live and breathe.”

Ren shook the hand of the person he considered his brother, then pulled him in for the hug. Akechi chuckled. “You and your tendency to hug your rivals.”

They released each other from the hug with a big smile. Ren then looked at her sister, Futaba Sakura, who was sitting on the hood of the car, wearing some kind of black suit that matched with Akechi’s.

“Hey ‘Taba. How’s life?”

Futaba grinned. “Swell! Just vibing, as always!” She stood up to give Ren a hug while Akechi hugged Makoto.

“It’s been a bit Mako.”

“Yeah. I suppose it has.”

Once pleasantries had been exchanged, the two parties side by side, observing their weapons. Makoto took a revolver, a couple of knuckle dusters, and a nodachi that she kept attached to her belt. Ren stuck with the simple knife and Tkachev combo.

Makoto turned to look at Akechi. “Any guards?”

“Ten. Armed pretty well. Kamoshida used the last of his olympics money to buy some bodyguards.”

Ren’s eyes went wide as he finished arming himself. “From who?”

Futaba looked up with a scowl. “Protection racket. No specific origin.”

Makoto looked at her. “Can you take it down?”

Futaba smirked. “Already done!”

Ren mirrored that smirk. “So, that’s it? Nothing else of note?”

Akechi shook his head. “As despicable as Kamoshida is, he’s not exactly a mob boss.” He flashed a small grin. “I mean, after you guys killed a god, nothing really becomes difficult.”

Futaba nodded. “Mhm! It’s like fighting a level 1 scrub while you’re level 99!”

A pause. Then Akechi nodded. “Yeah, what she said.”

Ren and Makoto looked at him with wide eyes. Akechi flashed a wry smile. “I’ve had a lot of time to catch up on what I missed while I worked for Shido. Thanks to her.”

Futaba gave her signature laugh and they all soon chuckled.

Then Makoto gave Akechi a look. “Are you sure you don’t want to be a part of this?”

Akechi sighed. “No, thank you. I swore that I would end my trail of bodies the day Shido died, and he’s gone. I have enough blood on my hands. I’m not breaking that until I know…” He trailed off, but the point was made.

Futaba nodded with him. “Yeah, I…I already got one tally mark. I’d like to leave it like that for now.”

Both Ren and Makoto nodded, put on their masks, and walked towards the warehouse.

Akechi called out to both of them before they fully left. “Hey!”

They both turned to face them. “Make sure you make that son of a bitch suffer.”

They both smirked, with Ren waving his hand. “Done. You better buy dinner for us after!”

Makoto pitched in. “I’m quite fond of sushi myself!”

Futaba started laughing maniacally while Akechi just grumbled. Leaving the couple to walk up to the warehouse and fulfill some unfinished business.

Both Ren and Makoto stopped right outside the entrance, and looked at each other.

“Hey Mako?”

“Yes, Ren?”

Ren smiled softly. “I love you.”

Makoto smiled right back. “I love you too.” She raised her gun. “You ready?”

Ren nodded. “Yeah. Let’s finish this.”

And they busted down the doors.

——-Take all that you have left——

Five seconds. In just five seconds, three people were downed.

Makoto decked one in the face, while Ren sliced them with his knife. The former used every aikido technique she had ever learned, every method of killing she had ever observed and used it to destroy these unfortunate trespassers.

Ren on the other hand fought with reckless abandon, similarly to how Joker approached the metaverse. Every punch, every gunshot, it was all treated as a meaningless joke. Everything is to some extent after you’ve conquered death itself.

Then the big guy came in. Towering at nearly seven feet, he looked down at both Makoto and Ren.

“ _ You  _ **_dare_ ** _ trespass on  _ **_STYX TERRITORY?!_ ** **”**

Ren smirked. “As in the River Styx? Classy name! I like it!”

Makoto shared that smirk. “Well, it’s a real shame that the name isn’t going to last long after today.”

They both charged at the man, Ren slicing at his knees, causing him to topple over. Makoto then proceeded to wail on his face, drawing blood immediately, eventually causing him to fully collapse and pass.

The couple then looked at each other, both covered in blood. Ren gave a little smirk. “You uh, got a little something on your left cheek.”

“Oh!” Makoto tried wiping at it.

“The other cheek.”

Another try, and she fully wiped it off. Then she grinned at Ren. “Hey, you got a little something on your head.”

Ren went to wipe it, but Makoto did it for him…

And snatched a kiss at the same time.

He started to blush profusely, leaving Makoto to give him a look. “Seriously? You’re almost 22 years old and  _ that _ got you?”

Ren completely fumbled his words together. “ _ Iwasn’texpectingthat. _ ”

She giggled. Until they started being shot at. Then they both ducked behind cover as quickly as possible.

“ **YOU BASTARDS! WHO ARE YOU AND WHY ARE YOU HERE?!** ”

Ren recovered and looked at Makoto across the way with a grin. “That’s the guy. I remember that pompous voice of his anywhere. So, how do you want to do this?”

Makoto seemed lost in thought…until she pulled out her nodachi with a smirk. Ren’s eyes went wide.

“You aren’t serious.”

She flashed a wry smile. “I’ve been practicing for a while. Let’s see how this goes.”

Makoto left her cover spot and at lightning speeds, dashed at Kamoshida’s position behind a box, and sliced his arm off, disarming him completely.

“ **YOU-YOU BITCH!** ”

Ren walked over to her position with a smirk. “Well played, Mako.”

She did a mocking bow. “Thank you, thank you.”

They both towered with Kamoshida, their expressions turning to scowls.

“Suguru Kamoshida.” Ren spoke first. “Long time no see.”

Kamoshida scowled right back, screaming, “Am I supposed to know who you guys are?!”

The Joker smirked. “Ah, right, the masks.” Both him and Makoto took their masks off, revealing the grim reality of those who had come to collect Kamoshida’s debts. 

Kamoshida’s eyes immediately went wide. “ _ You! _ It c-can’t be! After all these years?! How are you-?!”

Makoto spoke with a dark tone. “When that god reversed your change of heart, you should have known we’d be coming the moment you were released from prison.”

“Change of heart?” Kamoshida’s eyes went even wider than before. “Wait!  **YOU GUYS ARE THE PHANTOM THIEVES?!** ”

“ _ Were.  _ We  _ were _ the Phantom Thieves. That time has passed thanks to people like you.” Makoto lifted her nodachi and thrusted it straight into Kamoshida’s leg.

“ **AGH! MY DAMN LEG! YOU** -“

Ren scowled. “Now you know what it’s like to have a busted leg.

Do you know how many people have been hurt because of people like you?”

“P-please, don’t do this!”

His eyes bore into Kamoshida’s soul. “Shiho, Mishima, Ann, Ryuji, Kawakami, Yusuke, Haru, Hifumi, Shinya, Sae, everyone we have ever loved is  _ gone _ !”

Kamoshida whimpered. “I don’t even know who half of those people are!”

Makoto shared that scowl. “You were complicit. Same as the rest of the adults who watched. You were the first target the Phantom Thieves tried to change the heart of.

But clearly, that method doesn’t work. If you want to enact justice…you have to burn it all down. From the inside out.”

Ren leaned in close. “You have no idea how long I’ve waited to do this. Since the moment I met you…Ann would have said that there are fates worse than death. But now I know better.

And besides.

She isn’t here right now.”

Kamoshida looked up with a completely terrified look. “Who…who are you people?”

Ren looked up at Makoto, and she spoke with this…unnatural tone. “ _ We are Yakuza _ . Dealers of justice in a world invaded with distortion.

We have killed gods, monsters, shadows, and murderers.

You are nothing.”

Both of them pointed their guns at him, and cocked back the hammer. Makoto spoke ruefully. “You don’t even qualify for a painful death.

You are just that pathetic.”

“ **WAIT, PLEASE!** ”

Ren scoffed. “See ya!”

**_BANG!_ **

Suguru Kamoshida was finally gone.

Both Makoto and Ren took a large exhale of breath. Took a moment to just…take it all in. That this is the path they had chosen for their life.

.

.

.

.

And then…

“Hey, Makoto.”

Makoto looked up with a small smile to Ren. “What’s up?”

“Wanna grab some dinner?” He was grinning.

A momentary pause. Then…

“Yeah, sure.”

At that, the two burst out in subdued, content laughter. The laughter of two people who had no other paths to take in life. They walked out together, hands intertwined, muttering about what to eat, where to go, and what to see next.

Leaving the past with Suguru Kamoshida’s rotting corpse.

Walking into a glorious, new world.

Where nothing could go wrong.

—————And use those tools of destruction to wage war————

  
  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Wow! Okay, I've been planning this AU for years, and thanks to Shumako Mini Bang, I finally got to execute it. It was a fun undertaking that I wouldn't have been able to do without my artist partner, @soarerv1 on twitter! She created the associating piece and was a huge help. I hope you guys enjoyed this story and the piece, and every other one associated with the Mini Bang! See you soon with future fics and updates!


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